• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.268-276
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• 2018

BACKGROUND: In the month of January 2018, fine dust alerts and warnings were issued 36 times for $PM_{10}$ and 81 times for PM2.5. Air quality is becoming a serious issue nation-wide. Although interest in air-purifying plants is growing due to the controversy over the risk of chemical substances of regular air-purifying solutions, industrial spread of the plants has been limited due to their efficiency in air-conditioning perspective. METHODS AND RESULTS: This study aims to propose a vegetation-based bio-filter system that can assure total indoor air volume for the efficient application of air-purifying plants. In order to evaluate the quantitative performance of the system, time-series analysis was conducted on air-conditioning performance, indoor air quality, and comfort index improvement effects in a lecture room-style laboratory with 16 persons present in the room. The system provided 4.24 ACH ventilation rate and reduced indoor temperature by $1.6^{\circ}C$ and black bulb temperature by $1.0^{\circ}C$. Relative humidity increased by 24.4% and deteriorated comfort index. However, this seemed to be offset by turbulent flow created from the operation of air blowers. While $PM_{10}$ was reduced by 39.5% to $22.11{\mu}g/m^3$, $CO_2$ increased up to 1,329ppm. It is interpreted that released $CO_2$ could not be processed because light compensation point was not reached. As for the indoor comfort index, PMV was reduced by 83.6 % and PPD was reduced by 47.0% on average, indicating that indoor space in a comfort range could be created by operating vegetation-based bio-filters. CONCLUSION: The study confirmed that the vegetation-based bio-filter system is effective in lowering indoor temperature and $PM_{10}$ and has positive effects on creating comfortable indoor space in terms of PMV and PPD.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.311-330
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• 2023

Development of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technique is becoming increasingly important as a method to mitigate the strengthening effects of global warming, generated from the unprecedented increase in released anthropogenic CO₂. In the recent years, the characteristics of basaltic rocks (i.e., large volume, high reactivity and surplus of cation components) have been recognized to be potentially favorable in facilitation of CCS; based on this, research on utilization of basaltic formations for underground CO₂ storage is currently ongoing in various fields. This study investigated the feasibility of underground storage of CO₂ in basalt, based on the examination of the CO₂ storage mechanisms in subsurface, assessment of basalt characteristics, and review of the global research on basaltic CO₂ storage. The global research examined were classified into experimental/modeling/field demonstration, based on the methods utilized. Experimental conditions used in research demonstrated temperatures ranging from 20 to 250 ℃, pressure ranging from 0.1 to 30 MPa, and the rock-fluid reaction time ranging from several hours to four years. Modeling research on basalt involved construction of models similar to the potential storage sites, with examination of changes in fluid dynamics and geochemical factors before and after CO₂-fluid injection. The investigation demonstrated that basalt has large potential for CO₂ storage, along with capacity for rapid mineralization reactions; these factors lessens the environmental constraints (i.e., temperature, pressure, and geological structures) generally required for CO₂ storage. The success of major field demonstration projects, the CarbFix project and the Wallula project, indicate that basalt is promising geological formation to facilitate CCS. However, usage of basalt as storage formation requires additional conditions which must be carefully considered - mineralization mechanism can vary significantly depending on factors such as the basalt composition and injection zone properties: for instance, precipitation of carbonate and silicate minerals can reduce the injectivity into the formation. In addition, there is a risk of polluting the subsurface environment due to the combination of pressure increase and induced rock-CO₂-fluid reactions upon injection. As dissolution of CO₂ into fluids is required prior to injection, monitoring techniques different from conventional methods are needed. Hence, in order to facilitate efficient and stable underground storage of CO₂ in basalt, it is necessary to select a suitable storage formation, accumulate various database of the field, and conduct systematic research utilizing experiments/modeling/field studies to develop comprehensive understanding of the potential storage site.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2009

This study has been focused on determining the chemical composition of $^{14}C$ - in terms of both organic and inorganic $^{14}C$ contents - in reactor coolant from 3 different PWR's reactor type. The purpose was to evaluate the characteristic of $^{14}C$ that can serve as a basis for reliable estimation of the environmental release at domestic PWR sites. $^{14}C$ is the most important nuclide in the inventory, since it contributes one of the main dose contributors in future release scenarios. The reason for this is its high mobility in the environment, biological availability and long half-life(5730yr). More recent studies - where a more detailed investigation of organic $^{14}C$ species believed to be formed in the coolant under reducing conditions have been made - show that the organic compounds not only are limited to hydrocarbons and CO. Possible organic compounds formed including formaldehyde, formic acid and acetic acid, etc. Under oxidizing conditions shows the oxidized carbon forms, possibly mainly carbon dioxide and bicarbonate forms. Measurements of organic and inorganic $^{14}C$ in various water systems were also performed. The $^{14}C$ inventory in the reactor water was found to be 3.1 GBq/kg in PWR of which less than 10% was in inorganic form. Generally, the $^{14}C$ activity in the water was divided equally between the gas- and water- phase. Even though organic $^{14}C$ compound shows that dominant species during the reactor operation, But during the releasing of $^{14}C$ from the plant stack, chemical forms of $^{14}C$ shows the different composition due to the operation conditions such as temperature, pH, volume control tank venting and shut down chemistry.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.33-43
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• 2020

CO₂ geological storage is currently considered as the most stable and effective technology for greenhouse gas reduction. The saline formations for CO₂ geological storage are generally located at a depth of more than 800 m where CO₂ can be stored in a supercritical state, and an extensive impermeable cap rock that prevents CO₂ leakage to the surface should be distributed above the saline formations. Trough analysis of seismic and well data, we identified the basalt flow structure for potential CO₂ storage where saline formation is overlain by basalt cap rock around PZ-1 exploration well in the Southern Continental Shelf of Korea. To evaluate CO₂ storage capacity of the saline formation, total porosity and CO₂ density are calculated based on well logging data of PZ-1 well. We constructed a 3D geological grid model with a certain size in the x, y and z axis directions for volume estimates of the saline formation, and performed a property modeling to assign total porosity to the geological grid. The estimated average CO₂ geological storage capacity evaluated by the U.S. DOE method for the saline formation covered by the basalt cap rock is 84.17 Mt of CO₂(ranges from 42.07 to 143.79 Mt of CO₂).

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.23-32
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to quantify human energy budgets for different structures of outdoor spatial surfaces affecting thermal comfort, to analyze the impacts of tree shading on building energy savings, and to suggest desirable strategies of urban greenspace planning concerned. Concrete paving and grass spaces without tree shading and compacted-sand spaces with tree shading were selected to reflect archetypal compositional types for outdoor spatial materials. The study then estimated human energy budgets in static activity for the 3 space types. Major determinants of energy budgets were the presence of shading and also the albedo and temperature of base surfaces. The energy budgets for concrete paving and grass spaces without tree shading were $284\;W/m^2$ and $226\;W/m^2$, respectively, and these space types were considerably poor in thermal comfort. Therefore, it is desirable to construct outdoor resting spaces with evapotranspirational shade trees and natural materials for the base plane. Building energy savings from tree shading for the case of Daegu in the southern region were quantified using computer modeling programs and compared with a previous study for Chuncheon in the middle region. Shade trees planted to the west of a building were most effective for annual savings of heating and cooling energy. Plantings of shade trees in the south should be avoided, because they increased heating energy use with cooling energy savings low in both climate regions. A large shade tree in the west and east saved cooling energy by 1~2% across building types and regions. Based on previous studies and these results, some strategies including indicators for urban greenspace planning were suggested to improve thermal comfort of outdoor spaces and to save energy use in indoor spaces. These included thermal comfort in construction materials for outdoor spaces, building energy savings through shading, evapotranspiration and windspeed mitigation by greenspaces, and greenspace areas and volume for air-temperature reductions. In addition, this study explored the application of the strategies to greenspace-related regulations to ensure their effectiveness.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.647-657
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• 2015

To investigate a method for calculation of the heating load for environmental designs of horticultural facilities, measurements of total heating load, infiltration rate, and floor heat flux in a large-scale plastic greenhouse were analyzed comparatively with the calculation results. Effects of ground heat exchange and infiltration loss on the greenhouse heating load were examined. The ranges of the indoor and outdoor temperatures were $13.3{\pm}1.2^{\circ}C$ and $-9.4{\sim}+7.2^{\circ}C$ respectively during the experimental period. It was confirmed that the outdoor temperatures were valid in the range of the design temperatures for the greenhouse heating design in Korea. Average infiltration rate of the experimental greenhouse measured by a gas tracer method was $0.245h^{-1}$. Applying a constant ventilation heat transfer coefficient to the covering area of the greenhouse was found to have a methodological problem in the case of various sizes of greenhouses. Thus, it was considered that the method of using the volume and the infiltration rate of greenhouses was reasonable for the infiltration loss. Floor heat flux measured in the center of the greenhouse tended to increase toward negative slightly according to the differences between indoor and outdoor temperature. By contrast, floor heat flux measured at the side of the greenhouse tended to increase greatly into plus according to the temperature differences. Based on the measured results, a new calculation method for ground heat exchange was developed by adopting the concept of heat loss through the perimeter of greenhouses. The developed method coincided closely with the experimental result. Average transmission heat loss was shown to be directly proportional to the differences between indoor and outdoor temperature, but the average overall heat transfer coefficient tended to decrease. Thus, in calculating the transmission heat loss, the overall heat transfer coefficient must be selected based on design conditions. The overall heat transfer coefficient of the experimental greenhouse averaged $2.73W{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}C^{-1}$, which represents a 60% heat savings rate compared with plastic greenhouses with a single covering. The total heating load included, transmission heat loss of 84.7~95.4%, infiltration loss of 4.4~9.5%, and ground heat exchange of -0.2~+6.3%. The transmission heat loss accounted for larger proportions in groups with low differences between indoor and outdoor temperature, whereas infiltration heat loss played the larger role in groups with high temperature differences. Ground heat exchange could either heighten or lessen the heating load, depending on the difference between indoor and outdoor temperature. Therefore, the selection of a reference temperature difference is important. Since infiltration loss takes on greater importance than ground heat exchange, measures for lessening the infiltration loss are required to conserve energy.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.19-31
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• 2024

Ports are vital social infrastructures that significantly influence both people's lives and a country's economy. In South Korea, the aging of port infrastructure combined with the increased frequency of various natural disasters underscores the necessity of displacement monitoring for safety management of the port. In this study, the time-series displacements of Yeongilman Port and surrounding areas in Pohang, South Korea, were measured by applying Permanent Scatterer Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PSInSAR) to Sentinel-1 SAR images collected from the satellite's ascending (February 2017-July 2023) and descending (February 2017-December 2021) nodes, and the displacement associated with the 2017 Pohang earthquake in the port was analyzed. The southern (except the southernmost) and central parts of Yeongilman Port showed large displacements attributed to construction activities for about 10 months at the beginning of the observation period, and the coseismic displacement caused by the Pohang earthquake was up to 1.6 cm of the westward horizontal motion and 0.5 cm of subsidence. However, little coseismic displacement was observed in the southernmost part of the port, where reclamation was completed last, and in the northern part of the oldest port. This represents that the weaker the consolidation of the reclaimed soil in the port, the more vulnerable it is to earthquakes, and that if the soil is very weakly consolidated due to ongoing reclamation, it would not be significantly affected by earthquakes. Summer subsidence and winter uplift of about 1 cm have been repeatedly observed every year in the entire area of Yeongilman Port, which is attributed to volume changes in the reclaimed soil due to temperature changes. The ground of the 1st and 2nd General Industrial Complexes adjacent to Yeongilman Port subsided during the observation period, and the rate of subsidence was faster in the 1st Industrial Complex. The 1st Industrial Complex was observed to have a westward horizontal displacement of 3 mm and a subsidence of 6 mm as the coseismic displacement of the Pohang earthquake, while the 2nd Industrial Complex was analyzed to have been little affected by the earthquake. The results of this study allowed us to identify the time-series displacement characteristics of Yeongilman Port and understand the impact of earthquakes on the stability of a port built by coastal reclamation.